Maybe Russia will invade Ukraine, maybe they won’t. But America’s apparent all or nothing negotiations where America wins, Russia loses, actually makes invasion more likely.
Russia has valid national security concerns going back 30 years when the U.S. promised Russia, NATO would not expand one inch into former Soviet territory once Russia pulled its troops from East Germany, allowing German reunification. Surprise, surprise. NATO went on a recruitment binge, bringing 13 former soviet republics into NATO and encouraging 2 more, Georgia and Ukraine as well.
The latter two represented a threat too far for Russia to accept. In 2008, egged on by President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain, Georgia initiated military action to regain 2 Russian leaning breakaway provinces. Russia responded with overwhelming force that crushed the Georgian incursion. Realizing Georgia acted irresponsibly in goading Russia to counterattack, and that the war was of no material consequence to the West, the West did nothing.
Continue reading “The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming”